I Will Remember
by GotHimASandwich
Summary: (this fic was deleted, due to a grave error I had made. Nothing in the story has changed.) After being discharged from the UNSC, Chief is still chasing leads on Cortana's whereabouts. Could she still be alive, or is this the fantasy of a lonely man?
1. Chapter 1

**I'm ba-a-ack! Thank you, to those who've stuck by while I was on a writing hiatus. My husband, who's a disabled vet, wasn't getting paid enough from the VA, I had to go to work so he wouldn't have to break himself to do so. But money situation is getting better, so I was able to leave work and stay home with our children.**

 **As for the actual story, this is the after-chapters to the story The Search Is On. In the beginning, Master Chief is chasing down leads to possible locations Cortana could be. Each story will have to halves to it; the first half will be Master Chief as he's looking for her, and the second half will be...well, can't spoil too much, now can I? But I think you will love it. As always, I am not the owner of the Halo series or its characters, only their respected parties do. Plus, my husband nor I would have to work if we owned Halo, lol. Enjoy the series, PM if there are concerns. The characters will be OOC (a lot.) Constructed criticizers are welcome, flamers can dance in a flame (literally.)**

* * *

 ** _Master Chief_**

It's been a long time, since this battle began. There was no chance in Hell, that Master Chief...John...was going to let Cortana slip through the cracks as another rampant AI disappearing into...wherever it is they go. John was going to have to get used to the fact, he's no longer a soldier with the UNSC...

UNSC was, at first, supportive of my endeavor to find the real Cortana, back when we had a solid lead. She saved my life, and countless lives when she sacrificed her. The least they could do was help me on my search, when we had doubtless proof of where Cortana's data stream ended up. But after years of never getting a single sniff of a lead, they called the case dead, and ceased all efforts and resources to find her.

But not me. I spent years of my life, with her in my head. Even with her data chip out of my helmet, I could still...sense her in my mind. See glimpses and feel her emotions. At first, I believed it to be nonsense, until Dr. Halsey told me, it is possible for AI's to seem completely human, even to the point of being able to form souls and relationships, but wouldn't elaborate. She had explained that Cortana being in my mind, and being able to _feel_ her, was my human reaction of falling in love.

Of course, being a soldier, I denied myself any such feelings and wouldn't allow myself the distraction. But after we defeated the Didact...maybe long before, if I'm willing to admit, I knew I could drop my shield. I could break down the wall I've forced around myself, and, figuratively, go running to her arms. When Cortana told me that most of her was with the crumbling ship, and only enough of her stayed back to make sure I was safe, I did not want to accept that I was going to lose, possibly, the only living being in this reality that made me feel...more _human_ than any human ever could. I was not about to roll over and accept her loss, and move on as I normally would...as the _soldier_ in me, would.

But I no longer have that problem. I am no longer a soldier, since my discharge from UNSC due to my "mental instability, brought on by the loss of an AI." Under normal circumstances, I would fight to prove I belong in the UNSC, that it was where I want to be.

Truthfully? I no longer belong there, because I love, and feel, and care. And losing Cortana? That's their reality, not my own. And I'll be cold and dead before I even think of giving up. It's been a long battle, fighting to chase down leads, being told that AI's are gone and there is no way to get them back. Until I happened to hear a whisper of a planet. This planet, its sole purpose was to breed humans and train their minds. And when their time comes, they put their bodies to sleep, and upload their minds to chips to be used. If John ever had hope that he would find her, he knew she had to be there. Against all other instincts and reactions, John decided he would spend the remainder of his life there. If he had to look at every face, and mention Master Chief to get a reaction, then he would.

It was decided, John would move to this planet called Insediamento. With what little possessions he had, and the last of his savings from his career, he managed to find the one ship going there. A cargo transport ship called Serenity, led by a man even crazier than himself and a woman just as crazy. They didn't care who he was or why he was going there. He needed to go, and they knew it. Later that night, John lowered himself into a guest room, not much unlike the rooms he slept in aboard the Dawn, when he could afford a couple of hours outside of his armor. He laid himself onto the bunk bed, his hands forming a pillow behind his head as he smiled to himself, feeling the take-off as he headed for the planet.

 _I'm coming for you, Cortana. I will find you, and I won't ever let you go..._ Was the last thought, before closing his eyes.

 ** _Cortana_**

 _I'm coming for you, Cortana. I will find you, and I won't ever let you go._ She could see a muscular man in her dream. His eyes, a gentle blue, but intense, as he gazed into her mournful violets. She felt his hands surround her's. They looked so rough, but gentle as if they were a newborn baby's. Everything about this man before her was a contradiction. He looked rugged, but so smooth and easy. The electrified contact made her heart race, and his voice seemed to boil her blood. She sensed the air crackling, heating as they leaned closer, their eyes closing and lips almost touching...

Gasping for air, I sat straight up in my bed. That was the most intense dream I've had about him, since her mind was yanked all those years ago. I haven't retained too many of my memories from when I was an AI. All I knew was that I helped some military government with their ships. And I think I was eventually paired with someone they called Chief...

I run my fingers through my short, black hair, trying to remember details. It was the same man, she could tell. What was odd was, it didn't feel like a memory. This isn't like the other dreams I've had, that felt like memories replaying. This dream, this was...live. I desperately try to regain my composure, my eyes falling to the sleeping figure next to me. Perhaps it's just pre-wedding jitters, that's making me so nervous. After all, how could Cortana, the woman who swore to never love a man, so short after waking, fell in love with the lab tech who cared for her all those years she was under.

I shake my head, I must be silly. I pull back the green and gold quilts, wondering why those colors were so important to me. I feel the plush carpet underneath my feet, hands grasp the soft bed as the cold band turn against my heated skin. I look down to what was suppose to be the symbol of mine and Tim's love, and remind myself that next month, I won't be so worried of the dreams. They're just that, dreams. I look around in the darkened room, until bright, scarlet letters read 04:30 AM.

Slowly, I peel myself from comfort as I head to the showers, and get ready for work. Since my release from the program, Tim has helped me find work at the docks. When ships come in, it was her job to welcome them to the new planet and show them around. After donning a long skirt, black with hints of blue and violet and a strapless black shirt. Something about today, she felt, would be the day to change her life. As she watched the new ship slowly coming to dock, and many people bustling to make sure they make room the cargo on board, something inside her clicked. The same, intense feeling she shared with the man in her dreams, had reappeared as the ship locked onto the docking bridge and it's bay door opened. She started into the traditional greeting, a man she would know to be Mal, informed her that they had brought a third party to the planet.

"Mal, you could've called ahead of time. We would've had a welcoming party for him." I said coolly. It was against most regulations to allow someone with no interest or business to be allowed on the soil.

"Well, to be honest, he paid good money to be here. Says he's looking for a long-lost friend. Wouldn't tell me her name, but she must mean a lot to him, for _him_ to beg passage." He said, signing documents, answering a multitude of questions.

"Maybe we can keep him busy long enough to get him amnesty, and let him stay. At long as he doesn't cause grief..." I whispered, before we straightened up. I have yet to know anyone Mal hasn't brought before, that were grievers. "Just show me the way to him, let's see what I can do."

Mal shook my hand, frankly relieved that I didn't turn him down. He lead me, arm-in-arm, over to a large, blond man, bent over his open sack as he repacked.

"Chief, this lovely woman is gonna show you around the planet, get you settled in before you look for your friend."

My breath nearly stopped when John stood up, as his eyes realized what it was they were seeing. His mouth seemed to stammer before finding the words.

"My name's John, but a lot of people call me Chief...What's...what's your name, miss?" His rough-looking hands, smooth to the touch, easily swallowed mine as my heart stopped in my throat. These hands...those eyes...

"I think you know who I am...Chief..."

* * *

 **I know it seems rushed, and probably not very good. So Cortana's actually human, and John/Chief finally found her. But how are things gonna work out, with Cortana being engaged. Will John be allowed to stay on the planet, given who he is? We'll find out everything with the next update. Thanks for reading, and I promise the next chapter will be better. I didn't want it to be short, but I couldn't have it drawn out without actual story behind it. I do apologize, if it's not great, but you will be amazed with the next one, lol.**


	2. Chapter 2

_**Thanks for the feedback, everyone. Here's part two of the story, hope you enjoy!**_

* * *

 _Mal shook my hand, frankly relieved that I didn't turn him down. He lead me, arm-in-arm, over to a large, blond man, bent over his open sack as he repacked._

 _"Chief, this lovely woman is gonna show you around the planet, get you settled in before you look for your friend."_

 _My breath nearly stopped when John stood up, as his eyes realized what it was they were seeing. His mouth seemed to stammer before finding the words._

 _"My name's John, but a lot of people call me Chief...What's...what's your name, miss?" His rough-looking hands, smooth to the touch, easily swallowed mine as my heart stopped in my throat. These hands...those eyes..._

 _"I think you know who I am..."_

John walked a pace or two behind Cortana, studying her figure and matching it to the blue hologram he had grown to care for and trust. He could hear the chatter of the passing people, picking up on various conversations of dinner plans and how a farm should be tended to. Many decades as a Spartan, John developed the skill to follow multiple conversations, going into detail what the subject was, who talked and how many. The only voice his ears cared to hear was Cortana's. She only looked back once or twice, assuming to make sure he was still following. Half an hour has passed already, since his arrival, and aside the brief moment of their eyes and souls knowing who the other truly was, she hadn't made any attempt to talk about their history, or how she could even be alive.

When Dr. Halsey attempted to explain the process of creating AI's, John would swear on his life that she never mentioned AI's were real people, in truth. In all the rumors, on all the planets in all the galaxies, not once did John hear a passing whisper that Cortana was alive in a human sense. He knew she was alive, but he always imagined her forced into another ship or a facility's systems. Never would he believe that his eyes would drink in her beauty, nor his hands would touch her silky smooth skin. Her voice was as familiar as always, the velvet-like, caring tone she spoke with in his armor, and even her looks now, almost perfectly mimics what her AI looked like when she would project herself as a hologram. In all honesty, Cortana could talk about murdering every being in existence, organic or otherwise. Just to be able to be so close to her physically, for once in all those years...

John's train of thought was halted, when he realized that she had slowed her pace, allowing him to be mere inches from her. Her eyes darted over her left shoulder, something about her look, as she quickly glanced at the usual day crowd of the town market he realized they were in, before locking onto his.

"Keep quiet, follow my lead. When we get inside, ask me to help you find your room, make up any excuse. Just get me alone."

Before John had any sort of chance to reply, she had plastered her usual smile before coming underneath a sign. John's eyes floated upwards towards it, but the language isn't quite familiar, almost like a forgotten language that just needs to be dusted from the memories. Cortana shoved the old, wooden doors open, and threw her hands up. John could feel her excitement boiling up, and had barely enough time to recover from her break of character.

"Jimmy! How's my favorite hotel concierge?!" Cortana's face lights up to an old man, hunched over on the stool. His face turns from a book in his hands, and a toothless smile spreads from cheek to cheeck.

"Corty, I'm the only hotel concierge you know," he said with a chuckle, his eyes soon finding John, "I see you brought me another customer! You're too kind to me."

"Corty? I thought your name was Cortana." John asked, masking his tone as confused, looking at her puzzlingly. Her almost purplish eyes sneaking a wink, a silent thanks to keeping the charade. But why she needed him to pretend this was their first meeting, he was unsure of. What had her scared to the point, she felt the need to hide she knew who John was? Was she threatened as she awoke, if she ever met someone in person from her AI days, a terrible tragedy would occur? He had too many questions, and too few answers.

"He calls me Corty, he says it's because Cortana's too difficult," she spoke in a sarcastic tone, throwing air quotes as she spoke before smiling to continue, "But really, he's just a big flirt."

"My heart beats for you Cortana, because you are too kind! Now, let's get a room for your friend. Let's see..." The old man, Jimmy, flipped through a larger book, presumingly the hotel's ledger book, looking for a room. As he began mumbling to himself, little comments of each individual currently staying there, Cortana leaned in close, so only her whisper could be heard between them.

"There are things I can't talk about in the open, and rarely even behind closed doors. This is one of the few places I can openly discuss, but I'm not sure where exactly Jimmy stands on our situation."

"What situation are you talking about? Cortana, what's going on?" John asked. Surely things couldn't be so bad for her here, that she feared greatly to even whisper of her troubles in front of who he assumed was a friend. Could they?

"Not. Here!" She hissed through her teeth, digging her elbow into his side. John pursed his lips together. His instincts began screaming, something must be horribly wrong here for Cortana to be this afraid of speaking in the open. He didn't know what kind of life she might have here, or what the planet and its people are like...Even if she had the perfect life she always dreamed of, before they became separated, nothing was worth the fear she lived with. He knew he had to get her out of here.

Jimmy broke his train of thought, exclaiming of the business being brought to him to have few rooms available. He hands a key to John to room number 117, giving him directions. John thanked the man, picking up the bags and leaving a lightweight bag behind. He took a step before turning his head over his shoulder.

"Damn, I don't have enough arms. Miss Cortana, it's a very light bag, but could you bring it with you to my room?"

"Sure thing." She said, almost hurriedly. They make their way down hallways, turning here, going up the stairs to the other floor and coming to his room. John couldn't get the key to turn any faster, to save his life. The doorknob clicks, the oak door swinging open with a silent creek. As fast as it opened, John and Cortana moved quickly into the room. No sooner had they closed the door, before John fell to his knees, embracing Cortana. His muscular, pale arms engulfing her waist as he felt her arms around his head. Neither moved, nor spoke. John didn't care to count the days that they had been apart, because to him, each day without Cortana was a day too much for him. His eyes began to leak with tears, a wave of emotions washes over them both as they were finally reunited.

What was only a couple of minutes, was a lifetime to them, before John thumbed his tears away, standing tall and easily towering the tiny woman in front of him. They both smiled up at each other, savoring the physical contact as her hand was loosely within his own.

"Now that we're inside, we need to figure out how we're gonna get you out of here. That Firefly captain, Mel or Mal, is coming back in 30 days. You need to be ready to leave by then."

"No, I can't." Cortana said, her voice squeaking as she fought back more tears. John was confused. He judged that her life could've been bad or horrific from her actions. What was so important here that she still wanted to remain.

"Why? What is worth you living in fear here?" He asked, his eyes scanning her for any visual clues.

"There's one person here that we need to include in the escape. If they remain behind, whoever is in charge of this planet will surely have them killed." Her eyes were filled with fear. Not just for her life, but whoever was important to her.

"Who is this person?" He asked.

Cortana drew in a sharp breath before giving an answer she knew would break his heart, "My fiance.."

* * *

 **I really am sorry this had taken me so long, and probably not all that well-done. Between kids, work, and everything else, there was little time, lol. All is well now, no more job so I definitely have more free time to keep writing. As always let me know what you think. Thank you guys for reading!**


End file.
